Annular core support for toroidal winding machines



Nov. 24, 1959 R. F. BRENNEN ETAL 2,914,260

ANNULAR CORE SUPPORT FOR TOROIDAL WINDING MACHINES Filed June 7, 1954 IN V EN TORS.

201ml. 0 F. BRENNEN By JAMES A. Bucc/ ATTORNEY.

United States Patent ANNULAR CORE SUPPORT FOR TOROIDAL WINDING MACHINES Ronald F. Brennen and James A. Bucci, Brooklyn, N.Y., assignors to Welding Industry Research 8; Patent Cor poration, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Application June 7, 1954, Serial No. 434,708

7 Claims. (Cl. 242-4) This invention relates to winding and to means for winding a strand of material on an annular ring and more particularly to a supporting means for a ring such as an annular core of an electric transformer on which core wire is being wound, though it is noted that in some of the claims the invention is not limited to transformers nor even to electric devices.

Objects of the invention are to provide an improved supporting means of this kind which will hold the core firmly level and steady while being tightly wound with a stiff heavy wire.

Other objects of the invention are to provide an improved clamping supporting means of this kind which will rotate the core through a large angle without interference with the winding ring holding the wire being Wound on the core.

Additional objects of the invention are to efiect simplicity and efficiency in such methods and apparatus and to provide an extremely simple device or apparatus of this kind which is rapid, durable, economical and reliable in operation, and economical to manufacture and install.

Still other objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds; and while herein details of the invention are described in the specification and some of the claims, the invention as described in the broader claims is not limited to these, and many and various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as claimed in the broader claims.

The inventive features for the accomplishment of these and other objects are shown herein in connection with core supporting means which briefly stated, includes clamping structure for holding an annular core for toroidal winding by wire from a conventional Winding ring.

Said structure comprises an upstanding fixed race ring having a narrow gap in one side for passage of the winding wire, the outer and inner faces of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper and lower guide grooves. A clamping jaw plate disposed over the ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly over the race ring carries pairs of disk rollers journaled on and supported by and beneath the clamping plate on opposite sides of the race ring engaging in one of said grooves on each side of the race ring. Bearing blocks secured to and under said plate carry axially horizontal disks engaged with the other groove. Means are provided to clamp the annular core on the clamping plate.

Our clamping structure is surprisingly strong, is useful when winding cores tightly with large still heavy wire. Another advantage is, that it will rotate the core through a large angle, so that a large portion of the core can be wound with one setting of the clamping means.

For winding heavy thick insulated wire on a core, our core support is much superior to core supports wherein the core is frictionally engaged and rotated by three rotating rollers equal angles apart, as the rollers when engaged on the unwound part of the core, are not able to ,feed the thicker wound part under the roller, Without 2,914,260 Patented Nov. 24, 1959 manual adjustment of the rollers to accommodate the wound part when it reaches a roller. Also, the three roller type of support cannot maintain the core level, when partly wound, but tilts it so much that the winding is interfered with.

For winding heavy stilt winding our core clamp is superior to the pedestal type core clamp wherein the upright pedestal carrying the clamp is laterally offset from a short spindle or other axis of rotation coaxial with the annular core being wound, as the bearing part of the axis of rotation is so remote from the core clamp that the leverage moment on said bearing part is such that the bearing part is not able to resist the stress and maintain the core in proper position during the winding of the heavy stiff wire. Also, the pedestal carrying the core clamp limits too much the rotation of the core being wound, as the pedestal would engage the winding ring of the winding machine.

In the accompanying drawing showing, by way of example, one of many possible embodiments of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly in section approximately on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2, showing the core support with a wound core clamped therein, a portion of a winding ring being diagrammatically shown;

Fig. 2 is a plan partly in section substantially on the line 22 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the support showing the outer bearing block under the lower clamping plate.

Our improved core clamping structure for holding an annular core 10 for toroidal winding is for use on ;a toroidal winding machine having a conventional diagrammatically shown winding ring 12 passing through said core and adapted to hold wire to be wound and having a wire guide 14 for guiding the wire 16 around said core as the winding ring rotates in the direction of the arrow of Fig. 1.

Said clamping structure includes an upstanding race ring 18 secured fast on a suitable horizontal support 20 of said machine and having a narrow vertical gap 24 (Fig. 2) in the side nearest the winding ring, for passage of winding wire 16 substantially in the plane of movement of said guide.

The outer and inner faces respectively of said race ring have therearound outer and inner upper narrow grooves 26, 28 and wide lower guide grooves 30, 32. A lower clamping jaw plate 34 disposed over, and 'very slightly spaced from, the ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly of the race ring carries outer and inner bearing blocks 36, 38 secured by screws 39 on the lower face of the clamping plate adjacent to the outer and inner faces of the race ring, each provided with a horizontal bore 40 radial to the race ring and receiving a large diameter stud 42 fitted in said bore and provided with a slotted outer head 44 for rotational adjustment, and with an eccentric bearing extension 46 projecting at the inner end of the block. Axially horizontal lower disk rollers 48 journaled on said extension at the inner faces of said blocks engage in said wide grooves 30, 32 respectively to hold the clamping plate slightly spaced from the race ring and against upward and downward movement, and are adapted to be adjusted up or down by partial rotation of said studs 42 by means of a tool in the slots of the heads 44. Set screws 50 in the lower part of the blocks and engaging said studs hold them and the rollers 48 in adjusted position.

Pairs of vertical bearing studs 52 secured in said clamping plate and projecting downward at its lower face on opposite sides of the blocks adjacent to the outer and inner faces of the race ring carry disk rollers 54, 56 journaled on said vertical studs and engaging in said upper grooves 26, 28, whereby the clamp plate 34 may ride around the 3 ring. Spacing collars 58 on the vertical studs hold the disk rollers 54, 56 spaced from the clamping plate.

An upstanding clamping screw 60 mounted fast in the mid part of said lower clamping plate and having a wing nut 62 at the upper part is received in a bore of a horizontal upper clamping jaw plate 64 approximately couformably disposed over said lower clamping plate 34 under said nut 62; and a threaded vertical post 66 adjustably received in a threaded bore in said lower plate and having a tool receiving collar 68 fast thereon engages under said upper plate to hold the end of the upper plate up and is locked in adjusted position by a lock nut 70; whereby said wing nut may be operated to cause said clamping jaw plates to engage and hold an annular core coaxial with the ring for winding, whereby when the jaw plates are progressively moved around the ring successively difierent parts of the core are presented to the wire 16 being fed from the winding ring to cause the wire to be wound around the core, the wire passing through said gap 24.

The naked core is first clamped between the jaw plates and covered with windings from one side of the jaw plates and around the core to the other side of the jaw plates, after which the partly covered core is removed and the wound portion clamped between the jaw plates, after which the remaining part of the core is wound.

We claim as our invention:

1. Clamping structure for holding an annular core for toroidal winding of winding wire, said structure comprising, an axially upstanding fixed race ring having a narrow gap in one side for passage of the winding wire; the outer and inner faces of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper and lower guide grooves; a lower clamping plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly over the race ring; pairs of disk rollers journaled on and supported by and beneath the clamping plate on opposite sides of the race ring engaging in one of said grooves on each side of the race ring; axially horizontal intermediate disks journaled and supported beneath the clamping plate and engaging in the other grooves; and means to clamp the annular core on the clamping plate.

2. In a toroidal winding machine for winding wire; the combination of a core clamping structure for holding an annular core on the machine; a winding ring passing through said core and adapted to hold wire thereon, and having a wire guide for guiding wire around said core as the ring rotates; and a horizontal support for said structure; said clamping structure comprising an upstanding race ring secured fast on said support and having a narrow vertical gap in the side nearest the winding ring for passage of winding wire substantially in the plane of movement of said guide; the outer and inner faces respectively of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper narrow guide grooves and wide lower guide grooves; a lower clamping jaw plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly over the race ring; pairs of disk rollers journaled on and supported by and beneath the clamping plate on opposite sides of the race ring engaging in said narrow grooves on each side of the race ring; an axially horizontal intermediate disk journaled and supported beneath the clamping plate and engaging in the wide groove; and means to clamp the annular core on the clamping plate.

3. Clamping structure for holding an annular core to receive a toroidal windingof winding wire, said structure comprising, in combination, an upstanding fixed race ring having a comparatively narrow gap in one side for passage of the winding wire; the outer and inner faces of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper and lower guide grooves; a lower clamp jaw plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly over-the race ring; axially horizontal disks ournaled on and supported beneath the clamping plate and cooperatively engaged with the lower grooves; means to clamp the said annular core on the clamping plate; pairs of vertical bearing studs secured in said clamping plate and projecting downward at its lower face and adjacent to the outer and inner faces of the race ring; disk rollers journaled on said vertical studs and cooperatively engaged with said upper grooves; whereby the clamp plate may ride around the race ring; and spacing collars on the vertical studs for holding the disk rollers spaced from the clamping plate.

4. Clamping structure for holding an annular core for a toroidal winding of winding wire, said structure comprising in combination, an upstanding fixed race ring having a comparatively narrow gap in one side thereof for the passage of the winding wire; the outer and inner faces of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper and lower guide grooves; a lower clamping jaw plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly and heaving a threaded bore near the outer end; inner and outer bearing blocks secured on the lower face of the lower clamping plate adjacent to the outer and inner faces of the race ring and provided 'with horizontal bores radial to the race ring; studs. fitted in said bores and each provided with a slotted outer head for rotational adjustment, and with an eccentric bearing extension projecting at the inner end of each block; axially horizontal lower disk rollers jour-- naled on said extensions at the inner faces of said blocksv and cooperatively engaged with one of said grooves at. each face of the race ring to hold the clamping plate slightly spaced from the race ring and against upward and downward movement, and adapted to be adjusted up or down by partial rotation of said studs by means of a.

tool in the slots; set screws in the lower part of the:

blocks and engaging said studs for holding them in adjustment; and means to clamp the annular core on the:

clamping plate; and pairs of disk collars journaled on and supported by and beneath the clamping plate on opposite sides of the race ring engaging in the other of said grooves on each side of the race ring.

5. Clamping structure for holding an annular core for toroidal winding of winding wire, said structure com-- prising, an axially upstanding fixed race ring having lateral guide grooves therearound, and a gap for passage of the winding wire; a lower clamping plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly and outwardly; anti-friction means carried by the plate and eagaging in said grooves for supporting and guiding the clamping plate around the race ring; a vertical clamping screw fast in the mid portion of the top face of said lower plate and having adjusting means at the top; a horizontal upper clamping jaw plate over said lower plate approximately conformably disposed over said lower clamping plate and under said adjusting means and having an opening receiving said screw; a threaded vertical post received in the threaded bore in said lower plate and engaging under said upper plate to hold the rear end of the upper plate up; whereby said nut may cause said clamping jaw plates to engage and hold an annular core, to be wound, on said clamping face coaxial with the race ring; as the jaw plates are progressively moved around the race ring, difierent portions of the core are presented to a wire being fed from the winding ring wound around the core and passing through said gap.

6. In combination, an annular core; clamping structure for holding said annular core for the toroidal winding of the core with a winding wire; said structure comprising, an upstanding fixed race ring having a narrow gap in one side for passage of said winding wire; the outer and inner faces of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper and lower guide grooves; a lower clamping jaw plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly from the race ring toward the axis of the race ring and outwardly from the race ring in a direction away from said axis; pairs of disk rollers journaled on and supported by and beneath the clamping plate on opposite sides of the race ring engaging in one of said grooves on each side of the race ring; axially horizontal intermediate dlSKS ournaled and supported beneath the clamping plate and engaging in the other grooves; and means to clamp said annular core on the clamping plate.

7. Clamping structure comprising, an upstanding fixed race ring having a narrow gap in one side for passage of a winding wire; the outer and inner faces of said race ring having therearound outer and inner upper and lower guide grooves; a lower clamping jaw plate disposed over the race ring and projecting inwardly from the top of the race ring toward the axis of the race ring and outwardly from the race ring in the direction away from said axis; pairs of disk rollers journaled on and supported by and beneath the clamping plate on opposite sides of the race References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,433,751 Stahl Oct. 31, 1922 1,603,801 Potter Oct. 19, 1926 1,610,468 Pullets Dec. 14, 1926 1,679,804 Bisel et al. Aug. 7, 1928 2,196,463 Holleran Apr. 9, 1940 2,427,079 Werth Sept. 9, 1947 

